A community school is a place and a set of partnerships connecting a school, the families of students, and the surrounding community. A community school is distinguished by an integrated focus on academics, youth development, family support, health and social services, and community development. The community school strategy is central to efforts…

Family members are a child's first and most important teachers. A growing body of research demonstrates that when families are actively engaged in their child's learning, children are better prepared for school and achieve at higher levels. Increased participation by families in pre-kindergarten programs has also been linked to greater academic…

Ten years ago, in 1996, poet and children's book author, Pat Mora began celebrating "book joy" by founding a children's book and reading day, El Dia de los Ninos/El Dia de los Libros or Children's Day/Book Day. Dia is modeled on National Children's Day Celebrations in Mexico held since 1925 when it was launched in conjunction with a…

This article focuses on the PlayParty family event held by the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio. Through PlayParties, families immersed themselves in singing and playing what became traditional singing games. PlayParty songs that are frequently use include Skip to My Lou, Paw Paw Patch and Punchinella.

Researchers and policy makers have questioned the efficacy of family-involvement interventions. They believe that more studies are needed to compare outcomes of students whose families received a partnership intervention with those who did not. The author used data from the state of Ohio to compare student attendance in elementary schools that…

This article cites middle schools nationwide that are using various methods to partner with parents, ensuring that not only is entering middle school a smoother transition but that giving parents a better understanding of the changing curriculum is a top priority. Over 200 middle level schools are addressing No Child Left Behind requirements to…

This article describes the successful Ohio Early Start program, which is designed to prevent later developmental problems in infants and toddlers. The program was coordinated with the existing early intervention program and other efforts to ensure a comprehensive, community-based and family friendly network of child development health and…

Helping Books Help Families (HBHF) is a book discussion program developed by the State Library of Ohio to be instituted by public and school libraries in the state of Ohio. The focus of the program is to promote reading with three groups: families as a group, to parents alone as role models for reading, and to students in school libraries. There…

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to develop a reliable and valid family satisfaction instrument for use in Ohio's nursing homes. Design and Methods: Investigators worked with an advisory council to develop the survey. Purposive sampling techniques were largely used to select 12 small, medium, and large for-profit and proprietary facilities…

This assessment packet contains all materials to assess a student's competency in personal development. The purpose of the tests at the state level is to demonstrate achievement in knowledge associated with work and family life competencies. Used by the classroom teacher, the results can indicate a program's strengths and weaknesses and serve as a…

This study examined the beliefs of kindergarten, first-, and second-grade teachers regarding families' competence to contribute knowledge to their child's educational process. Findings suggest the need to consider the beliefs of current, as well as prospective, teachers regarding the frequently neglected "other half" of the partnership,…

A study compared the political action, attitudes, and behavior of union members and members of union households to those of individuals who are not affiliated with a union. National data from the 1950s through the 1980s on the political identification, beliefs, and behavior of union/union household members and nonmembers were analyzed along with…

This report evaluates the success of the Home-School-Community Agent (HSCA) project which was implemented for the 1988-89 school year in 8 high schools and 11 middle schools in Ohio. The primary purpose of the project was to help disruptive pupils make a positive adjustment to elements that interfere with their success in school. One objective of…

Seven preventive health measures were studied for purposes of determining Ohio rural residents' level of participation; change in participation between 1962 and 1972; participation by farm and rural nonfarm categories; and level of participation by age, sex, educational attainment, and family size. Randomly selected from 10 of Ohio's 88 counties,…

This assessment packet contains all materials to assess a student's competency in resource management. The purpose of the tests at the state level is to demonstrate achievement in knowledge associated with work and family life competencies. Used by the classroom teacher, the results can indicate a program's strengths and weaknesses and serve as a…